Floating pump



Oct. 7, 1969 EVANS ETAL 3,470,822

FLOATING PUMP Filed Dec. 6, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 53 mvmoR jSJ Lou/s" 5- [VA/V6 HAROLD A. BERGLU/VD ATTORNEY Oct. 7, 1969 B. EVANS ETAL FLOATING PUMP 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 6, 1967 %o w NM N H MM NM QM T mwaww sh wmmr Q INVENTOR A ou/s 5. EVANS H/IROLD A.ERGL u/vo United States Patent 3,470,822 FLOATING PUMP Louis B. Evans, Hastings, and Harold A. Berglund, Afton, Minn., assignors to Waterous Company, Ramsey, Minn. Filed Dec. 6, 1967, Ser. No. 6%,541 Int. Cl. F04b 49/04, 21/00; F0441 13/02 U.S. Cl. 103-35 13 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to a floatable pump including a float-supported internal combustion engine, and an engine-driven centrifugal pump having its inlet and at least a part of the impeller chamber below the Water level. The pump discharge is also below the water level to minimize the effect of the weight of the discharge hose on attitude of the pump. The pump engine throttle is connected to a throttle float operable so that the engine will idle until lowered into the water, whereupon the speed of the engine and pump will increase to the desired speed. A lowering of the water level or lifting the pump from the water will again reduce the engine speed.

This invention relates to an improvement in a floatable pump and deals particularly with a motor driven centrifugal pump capable of floating on the surface of a body of water and discharging a suflicient volume of water to permit the pump to serve as fire fighting equipment.

Considerable difficulty is experienced in the use of conventional fire fighting equipment in areas not supplied by Water mains and hydrants. Fire pumps are mounted upon trucks and are capable of delivering a tremendous volume of water to hose lines in the event hydrants are available. However, in the absence of such sources of water supply, it is necessary for the trucks to run intake hoses into a lake, pond, river, or other body of water. It is not always possible for the pump trucks to move close enough to the water supply to run suction lines thereto before becoming bogged down or mired in the swampy ground. There are various types of portable pumps which may be used to get water where it is impossible to maneuver the fire truck close enough to the water source. However, conventional portable pumps also require heavy suction hoses, and such pumps are generally not self-priming. Accordingly, there is a very definite need for pumping units of the type disclosed herein which may be carried manually and floated on the surface of a body, which require no suction hose, and which are self-priming.

Devices capable of accomplishing the desired result must have certain very definite characteristics. In the first place, the units must be light enough in weight so that they may be easily carried to the body of water. Secondly, the motive power must be sufficient so that the pump will deliver a high volume of water at a pressure sufficient to serve as a fire fighting equipment under normal operating conditions. It is also necessary that the operating motors be provided with a sufficient quantity of fuel to permit the pumps to operate without interruption for a relatively long period of time. It is also desirable that the pumps be able to draw liquid from the water supply until the supply is practically depleted. It is an object of the present invention to provide a fioatable pump capable of meeting these conditions.

An object of the present invention resides in the provision of a floatable pump structure including a centrifugal pump which is normally supported below the level of the liquid upon which the float may rest and which, accordingly, is self-priming. As soon as the float is placed upon the body of water the pump is suspended below the level of liquid and, with the motor in operation the pump will function immediately to pump water.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a portable pump which may be easily handled. In preferred form, the pump may be easily carried by means of a handle which extends to one side of the float. However, to simplify the task of lowering the unit from a point above the water such as a pier or bridge, a handle is also provided on the top of the unit so that the unit may be lowered when in horizontal position.

A further feature of the present invention lies in the provision of a pump of the type described which may be thrown or dropped into water while operating at low speed, and which will automatically increase in speed when floating on the water. The pump is provided with a control float secured to the throttle of the engine. When the device is lowered onto the surface of the water, this control float is raised, automatically increasing the engine speed. When the device is lifted from the water, or when the water is depleted, the control float lowers, and the speed of the engine is reduced to prevent excessive wear.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a device of the type described in which the float is generally ring-shaped and is of sufficient dimensions to provide the desired stability. In preferred form, the float comprises a generally ring-shaped body of polyurethane foam plastic or similar material capable of properly supporting the pump and its driving engine. Preferably, this supporting frace includes a handle which may be grasped by the hand for carrying the apparatus. This arrangement is advantageous in that virtually the entire weight of the pump, motor, and fuel tank is supported by the reinforcing frame, so that the device may be carried without producing any strain upon the body of the float itself.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a device of the type described which includes a screen or foraminous plate extending across the open interior of the float. This screen prevents material from entering the intake of the pump other than the water for which the intake is intended, and eliminates the possibility of the pump clogging up in its operation.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a device of the type described in which the air intake of the engine is protected by a shroud and baffle to prevent the entry of water spray. In dropping the unit into a body of water, there is often a splash or spray of water which could enter the engine intake and immediately stop the operation of the engine. This is prevented by the shroud and baffle.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a shield about the engine to keep the water from splashing up upon the engine. The float is designed to extend well above the level of the water, and a shield is provided to prevent the water from splashing up against the engine.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a device of the type described in which the float is designed to deflect water. The portion of the float which is normally submerged in the water is shaped in such a manner that if the float is dropped onto the surface of the water, the water will be deflected away from the float.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a device of the type described which may, on occasion, be operated on dry land through the use of an intake pipe connected to the pump intake and extended into the water. As a result, the pump may be used to draw water from a well or a cistern which is not of sufficient size or which is not open to permit the pump to float on the surface of the water.

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These and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be more clearly and fully set forth in the following specification and claims.

In the drawings forming a part of the specification:

FIGURE 1 is a longitudinal sectional view through the apparatus, the position of the section being indicated by the line 11 of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the float device with the pump engine and fuel tank removed therefrom.

FIGURE 3 is a rear end elevational view of the device.

FIGURE 4 is a bottom plan view of the device.

FIGURE 5 is a transverse sectional view through the apparatus showing the throttle actuating float, the view being not a true transverse section through the structure.

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged detail of the pump.

The floatable pump unit is indicated in general by the letter A. In general, the pump unit A includes a float which is indicated in general by the numeral 10, an internal combustion engine which is indicated in general by the numeral 11, and a centrifugal pump which is indicated in general by the numeral 12.

The float 10 is somewhat ovular in form including a front end 13, a rear end 14, and opposite sides and 16. The float is preferably made of foam plastic or similar material which is substantially lower in weight than water and which is capable of supporting the load.

The mounting plate 17 is marginally embedded in the float. The shape of the mounting plate 17 is best illustrated in FIGURE 2 of the drawings, which discloses arms 19 extending laterally from the plate and being connected by a connecting member 20 which reinforces the handle of the device. Handle strips 18 may be bolted to the connecting member 20 to make the handle easier to grasp. The purpose of this arrangement is to insure direct connection between the handle and the motor and other allied objects supported by the plate. The plate 17 is provided with a keyhole-shaped aperture therethrough including an arcuate portion 8 and an elongated portion 9 extending rearwardly therefrom to accommodate the engine muffler.

The internal combustion engine 11 is not shown in detail, as such engines are well known in the art. The engine 11 is provided with a starter unit 21 extending upwardly therefrom, which is bridged by a handle 22 including a pair of uprights 23 bolted to the upper end of the engine and a cross-member 24 connecting the uprights 23. The handle 24 may be used for carrying the unit or for use in lowering the unit onto the surface of a body of water or raising it from the water.

The pump 12 includes a lower housing section 25 and an upper housing section 26 defining the pump volute 29 and including the pump impeller which will be described. The pump sections 25 and 26 are connected together and connected to the reinforcing plate 17 by means of bolts 30 which extend through the two pump sections and through apertures 31 in the plate 17 (see FIGURE 2). The upper pump section 26 is provided with an upwardly projecting hollow cylindrical boss 32 which is designed to fit through the arcuate portion 8 of the keyhole-shaped aperture through the plate 17. A motor 11 is mounted to the upper housing section 26 by means of bolts 33 which extend upwardly through the cylindrical boss 32 and into the undersurface of the motor base 34.

A motor shaft 35 extends vertically downwardly through the motor base 34 and through the hollow cylindrical boss 32 to extend into the pump chamber between the housing sections 25 and 26. An impeller 36 is supported upon the shaft 35 and includes an upwardly extending boss 37 which surrounds the shaft 35 with a sliding fit and abuts against a shoulder on shaft 35. The impeller 36 includes an upwardly extending circular flange 39 which engages the interior of the boss 32 with a running fit, and the impeller includes an oppositely directed substantially cylindrical flange 40 which engages within the axial inlet opening 41 of the lower housing section 25 with a running fit. The impeller is secured to the shaft by suitable means such as by the nut 42.

As the pump inlet 41 is below the level of the water on which the float rests, the water level being indicated by the broken line 43, the water is free to flow into the impeller, making the pump at all times self-priming.

As best illustrated in FIGURES 1 and 4 of the drawings, the lower housing section 25 of the pump includes an outlet port 44 extending toward one end 13 of the float. A groove 45 is provided in the center of the front portion 13 to accommodate the discharge pipe 46. The discharge pipe 46 is provided with suitable coupling means 47 by means of which the pipe may be connected to a suitable hose or pipe. The discharge of the pump is actually normally below the water line of the body of water on which the pump rests, so that the weight of a discharge hose attached thereto has little effect on the attitude of the float. As indicated in the drawings, a screen or foraminous plate 49 extends between the sides 15 and 16 of the float and is secured thereto. As indicated in FIGURE 1, one end 50 of the screen 49 is bent upwardly into a channel-shaped groove 51 in the end 14 of the float, and the other end 52 of the screen is bent upwardly against the pump body. With this arrangement, the pump intake is protected from drawing in particles of foreign material of sufliciently large size to clog the pump. The screen is held in place by screws or other fastening means 53, illustrated in FIGURE 4 of the drawings.

The internal combustion engine 11 includes a U-shaped exhaust manifold 54 leading to an upwardly and rearwardly inclined exhaust pipe 55 equipped at its upper end with a muffler 56. The manifold 54 is located in the elongated portion 9 of the keyhole-shaped aperture in the plate 17 due to its low level. A fuel tank 57 is held in place upon the plate 17 by spaced straps 59 which are anchored to the plate 17 at 60 and which extend over the top of the tank; and by straps 61 which are anchored to the plate 17 at 62 and extend upwardly therefrom. The straps 59 and 61 are provided with outwardly turned flanges 63 and 64 respectively whiuh are clamped together by clamping bolts 65. Thus the fuel tank 57 is firmly supported on the plate 17 in the same manner as the pump and engine.

While the details of the engine are not described in detail, FIGURE 5 of the drawings discloses an intake manifold 66 which supports the engine carburetor 67. An air intake pipe 69 extends upwardly from the carburetor 67 into the air cleaner which is indicated by the numeral 70. The air cleaner 70 is closed by a lid 71 held in place by spring clips 72 hinged to the bottom plate 73 of the air cleaner and having hooked ends 74 which resiliently engage over the lid 71. A generally cylindrical shroud 75 has an open lower end and a closed upper end 76 having a downwardly offset center portion 77 bolted or otherwise secured as indicated at 79 to the air cleaner. The shroud 75 is to protect the air intake of the engine from water which might otherwise be splashed into the air cleaner.

The carburetor 67 is provided with a valve shaft 80 for controlling the speed of the engine. When the shaft 80 is rotated in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in FIGURE 5 of the drawings, the engine will operate at an idling speed. However, rotation of the shaft 80 in a clockwise direction acts to increase the speed of the engine. A throttle lever 81 is mounted upon the shaft 80 for operating the shaft. When the lever 81 is in the full line position indicated in FIGURE 5, the engine is moving at idling speed. However, when the arm 81 is in the position shown in dotted outline in this figure, the engine is traveling at an effective operating speed to pump the desired quantity of water.

A circular aperture 82 is provided in the plate 17 near one side 15 of the float, and the float side 15 is provided with an arcuate vertical groove in alignment with the aperture 82. A cylindrical float body 83 is vertically slidable in the groove 85, and the throttle actuating float 83 is connected to the throttle arm 81 by means of a rigid link 84. When the throttle lever 81 is in idling position, the throttle float 83 may rest upon the surface of the screen 49. The purpose of this arrangement is to permit the engine 11 to be started while the float is resting upon dry ground, and so that the engine will travel at a low rate of speed when not resting upon the surface of the water. When the float is placed on the surface of the water, the throttle float 83 will be below the water level, and will be raised by the water in order to pivot the throttle arm through the desired angular distance. The position of the throttle arm 81 may be adjusted relative to the throttle shaft 80 so that when the throttle float 83 is supported by the water, the float will move into the dotted outline position indicated in dotted outline in FIGURE 5, and the engine speed will be increased to the proper level.

The operation of the apparatus is believed apparent from the foregoing description. When the fioatable pump A is to be used, a hose is coupled to the coupling 47 on the discharge pipe 46, and the engine 11 is started through use of the starter unit 21. When started on land, the engine will operate at a relatively low idling speed to prevent excessive wear on the pump and the engine. The pump is then placed upon the surface of the water by any convenient means, the water flowing through the intake of the pump and into the impeller 36. At the same time, the throttle float 83 is raised by the water, pivoting the throttle arm 81 in a clockwise direction into the dotted outline position. When thus located, the pump will operate at its predetermined operating speed, and will pump liquid through the discharge pipe as long as water is available, or until the fuel supply runs out.

In the event the water level drops to the point where the pump is resting upon the bottom of the supply, as soon as the liquid level drops below the pump inlet, the flow of fluid will stop. Simultaneously, however, the pump throttle 83 will also slide downwardly as the liquid level lowers, correspondingly lowering the speed of the engine. As a result, if the liquid supply should run dry, the speed of the engine will decrease to idling speed to prevent injury to the pump and the engine.

It will also be understood that in the event the need for pumped water no longer exists, the float may be merely lifted from the surface of the water, causing the throttle float 83 to return the engine to idling speed, which will not be injurious to the equipment until the engine may be turned off.

It has been mentioned that the discharge pipe 46 is below the liquid level when the fioatable pump is in use. This arrangement minimizes the effect of the weight of the discharge hose on the attitude of the pump. With this arrangement, the pump may assume a more nearly horizontal position in actual operation than would otherwise be the case.

While the pump is primarily designed to float on the surface of the water, it is capable of functioning on dry land or otherwise out of the water. This may be accomplished by removing the screen 49 and attaching a suction hose to the lower pump section 25 in communication with the pump inlet 41. FIGURE 6 of the drawings indicates in broken lines a flange 86 secured to the pump, and a suction hose 87 secured to the flange 86.

The impeller includes a seal including a sealing ring 89 encircling the boss 37 of the impeller and a sealing ring 90 sealed to the housing section 26 and in running contact with the ring 89. This permits air from entering the pump housing during a priming operation. When used out of water, some priming means must also be provided, such as a hand operated diaphragm pump. As such auxiliary priming means are well known in the art, and as such a means is not necessary in normal operation of the pumps, it is not shown.

It should be noted that the grooves 45 and 51 in the ends of the float body extend upwardly to at least the undersurface of the pump. This permits the water to enter the pump even though the float is resting upon the bottom of the water reservoir, river, pond or other body of water.

In accordance with the patent statutes, I have described the principles of construction and operation of my Improvement in a Floatable Pump, and while I have endeavored to set forth the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that changes may be made within the scope of the following claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.

We claim:

1. A fioatable pump including:

a pump supported by said float in at least partially submerged position,

said pump having an impeller supported on a generally vertical axis and having its suction eye directed downwardly,

said pump including a housing enclosing said impeller and having an intake passage in its lower surface communicating with said suction eye,

an internal combustion engine supported by said pump and connected thereto for driving said impeller, said engine including a speed control throttle for controlling the engine speed, and

means connected to said throttle to actuate said throttle upon variations in the liquid level relative to said float.

2. The structure of claim 1 and in which said means connected to said throttle comprises a throttle float.

3. The structure of claim 1 and in which said throttle is pivotal from an idling speed position to a running speed position, and in which said means connected to said throttle comprises a throttle float, the weight of which normally urges said throttle toward idling speed position when said throttle float is out of water, the buoyancy of said throttle float urging said throttle toward running position when said float is in water.

4. The structure of claim 3 and in which said throttle float includes a buoyant member connected to said throttle by means of a rigid link.

5. The structure of claim 1 and including a handle extending above said engine by means of which said engine pump and float may be lifted.

6. A fioatable pump including:

a p p,

said pump having an impeller supported on a generally vertical axis and having its suction eye directed downwardly,

said pump including a housing enclosing said impeller and having an intake passage in its lower surface communicating with said suction eye,

an internal combustion engine connected to said pump for driving said impeller,

means on said float supporting said pump and internal combustion engine with said pump at least partially submerged,

said engine including a speed throttle for controlling the engine speed, and

means connected to said throttle to actuate said throttle upon variation in the liquid level relative to said float.

7. The structure of claim 6 and in which said means connected to said throttle comprises a throttle float.

8. The structure of claim 6 and in which said throttle is pivotal from an idling position to a running speed position, and in which said means connected to said throttle comprises a throttle float, the weight of which normally urges said throttle toward idling speed position when said throttle float is out of water, the buoyancy of said throttle float urging said throttle toward running position when said float is in water.

9. The structure of claim 8 and in which said throttle float includes a buoyant member connected to said throttle by means of a rigid link.

10. The structure of claim 6 and including a handle extending above said engine by which said engine, pump and float may be lifted.

11. The structure of claim 6 and in which said float is annular, and in which said means on said pump supporting said pump and internal combustion engine comprises a plate anchored to said float body within the same, the pump housing is secured to the undersurface of said plate, and said internal combustion engine being secured to said pump housing above said plate.

12. The structure of claim 11 and in which said plate extends beyond the periphery of said float body to include connected thereto, may be lifted.

13. The structure of claim 6 and in which said float encircles said engine and pump, and including grooves in the undersurface of said float having their upper surfaces at least as high as the intake passage of said pump.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,273,507 9/1966 Handford. 3,398,878 8/1968 Quiram et al. 230-56 10 3,400,664 9/1968 Kingsep.

ROBERT M. WALKER, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

